Nasri was 'prepared' for France omission

Samir Nasri has revealed that he was "prepared" for his omission from the France squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Published

15 May 2014

The attacking midfielder has displayed fine form for Manchester City this season and scored on Sunday as the club secured the Premier League title with a 2-0 win over West Ham.

However, Nasri - who was handed a three-match suspension by the French Football Federation following an expletive tirade directed at journalists during Euro 2012 - admitted after that game that he did not expect to be called upon by France coach Didier Deschamps, having been dropped for a friendly with the Netherlands in March.

His prediction was proven to be correct on Tuesday when Deschamps announced his 23-man party for the upcoming showpiece in Brazil and Nasri said the decision came as no surprise to him.

"I was prepared," he told Sky Sports News. "I knew before, sometimes you have the feeling.

"When you want to speak with the manager, but he doesn't want to speak with you, you know that you're not going to go to the World Cup.

"I was prepared mentally. It was a shock but I was prepared mentally, so I'm okay."

News that the former Arsenal man has missed out on the tournament has, though, come as a surprise to many City fans, which Nasri takes as a compliment.

"When people are talking like that, it means at some point you did something good," Nasri added. "So it's a good thing.

"What can I say? I respect his choice. He wanted not to pick me, good on him.

"I wish good luck to the French national team and I need to take some time now to think about the national team, because it has been twice now that they have taken a World Cup away from me."